Dead and Gone (Thornwood Academy)

Chapter 11

11

Thick clouds shroud the sky, a few pin-prick stars managing to peek through, but the moon fails to shine. Grayson hunches over, hands deep in his pockets, watching me wander from gravestone to gravestone. I've already checked out several small mausoleums at the top of the sloping cemetery. I recognized a couple of the founding families' names, but none had the Redridge name attached.

Much of the graveyard contains modern headstones, many with flowers deposited in front of the shining black marble, but I need the graves of the forgotten. My search takes me to the rear, close to the bottom of the sloped ground. The weathered gray stones hide the names and inscriptions behind moss, which I wipe away.

"Can I ask a question, Violet?" asks Grayson as he rests his backside on an old gravestone. I nod. "Why not visit in the daytime?"

"We were busy today. This is my first chance." I peer at the name. Robertson. Huffing, I move to the next. "Besides, this is en route to our rendezvous with Rowan and Leif."

"Could've come here tomorrow?"

I look around. "Are you scared of graveyards at night?"

He scoffs. "You know that isn't true."

"You wanted to spend time together before we met up with the others." I kneel and pick at moss to read the epitaph. Granville.

"Um. I didn't mean in the graveyard. Private time alone."

"We might find something useful in here," I say.

He pulls a face. "By examining every one of the dozens of old graves?"

"Yes."

"Ugh." Grayson pulls himself to stand again and wanders away, sitting on a wooden bench beneath the willow tree. He places his boots on the seat and draws his knees to his chest, Grayson's dark figure part-hidden by the branches that almost touch the ground.

"Planning an ambush?" I ask him.

"You know the only people I attack now are assholes who bully others," says the voice from behind the branches.

Happy that Grayson stopped distracting me, I continue my search.

Most people wouldn't hear the sound of soft-soled shoes on the dirt close to a nearby mausoleum, but a vampire hybrid can. I train my hearing on figuring out which direction, but the footsteps stop. Nobody approaches, and I move along to the next stone, pretending I'm unaware.

Can Grayson see from his vantage point?

I wipe at two more gravestones. Still no Redridge.

Whatever or whoever lurks near the mausoleum remains, and I stand, straighten, and look in their direction. I only catch a glimpse before they dart around the corner—a tall figure wearing concealing dark clothes.

Well, I can dart faster than them unless they're a vamp too, and streak through the stones towards the place the person stood. The angels atop the mausoleum look down on me as if they're judging the necromancer for walking close to those they protect.

Sneaker-shaped prints mark the ground, and I slant my head, listening.

"Violet?" Grayson appears at my shoulder. "Did you find something?"

"Did you see who was watching?" I ask.

"There was someone here?"

"Obviously, or I wouldn't ask the question." I run my fingertips over the mausoleum wall. "If the person ran and hid, they followed and are watching us."

"How would they know we're loitering in a graveyard? Probably someone passing through who saw scary Violet Blackwood and ran." He takes my hand. "Come on, we can return tomorrow." I clench my jaw, all for pursuing the mystery person into the woods adjoining the area. "Violet. Don't go off on one of your tangents. Leif and Rowan are waiting for us."

I scowl at Grayson for the nose flick accompanying his words. "Very well."

"I wish we'd spent our alone time elsewhere." Grayson smiles and brushes hair from my face, his green eyes brighter in the dark. His gaze drops to my lips, and he draws me to him, mouth nearing mine.

That mere touch sets the blood bond between us racing through me, and I’m torn whether to welcome the kiss or avoid how the scent of his blood could overwhelm me. I enjoy time alone with Grayson, but sometimes that can be unwise.

"The necromancer and the vamp hanging out and making out in the graveyard? Gross," says a male voice.

"You reckon they do the nasty on people's graves?" asks a second.

Good grief .

I spin to face the newcomers and stride over. Two human guys loiter close to the tall metal fence that runs alongside the graveyard. Even though they're wearing casual clothes, I still recognize the pair from Thornwood. These Darwin house humans stay away from supes and spend as much time around their human peers in town as the academy will allow. Fortunately, as I avoid the town's kids, I rarely see them.

"Oh, sorry, are we interrupting?" says the first, smirking.

I look up at the tallest one, whose short blond hair barely softens the sharp lines of his face. "You are disturbing us, correct, but we are not engaging in sexual activity. Grayson is assisting me in finding a suitable body."

His cocky smile slides away. "Body?"

"We're a team, you see," I tell him as Grayson stands behind me. "He finds and kills the victim, and I practice my reanimating skills. If things go wrong, digging a fresh grave to hide the evidence isn't difficult for us."

The guy beside him shuffles back slightly, eyes growing wider at whatever he can see on Grayson's face. Sharp, hemia vampire teeth, probably.

"Bullshit," sneers the blond, regaining his composure. "You'd never get away with that."

I turn to Grayson. "We're at the graveyard every Friday evening, right?" He nods in agreement, and I look back. "So maybe avoid loitering around here on a Friday in case we're short of a body?"

The blond stares and slowly moves his tongue along his lower lip. "Again, bullshit."

I step closer, and he stumbles back. "I spend a lot of unnecessary and wasted time dealing with accusations like yours. What once annoyed me has become boring and predictable."

"Yeah, well, when people do disappear, fingers point your way, Violet Blackwood."

"And are you pointing fingers?" I ask.

"Not this time, but supes cause trouble. They need dealing with."

Grayson pushes past me and stands almost nose-to-nose with the guy. "If attacks on supes by gangs of humans at the academy start again, I'll know where to look first."

"Gonna take us all on again, vamp?" he sneers, then jerks his chin at me. "We've seen you lurking in the graveyard so if anything happens to anybody tonight, we're witnesses."

"Where's Marvin?" asks Grayson.

The guy's mouth clamps, eyes narrowing in confusion—not the response he expected to his poorly veiled threat. "Marvin?"

"Marvin."

He glances at his companion. "If you mean the mole, check Insta."

"We already did. Do you know who possesses the stolen exhibit?" I ask.

"Human kids from town. What's it to you?"

I slant my head. "Because I like collecting dead bodies."

"You're a bloody weirdo," he says.

"And apparently a murderous one who drags victims from graves with her vampire boyfriend for fun." I look at him unblinkingly. "Would you like to wait around and see what we do to the bodies?"

"You're lying."

I sigh. "Do make your mind up. Am I a murderous weirdo or not?"

He huffs at me and glances at Grayson. "Take this as a warning—we've seen you tonight.

And so has somebody else.

As the suitably spooked guys walk away, I glance in the direction that the mystery figure ran. I'm tempted to either seek him or her out or remain and search for a Redridge gravesite to find more of the family's names.

However, I have a better lead to follow, thanks to Rowan's detective work. One that may yield better results.

Grayson chuckles and wraps an arm around my shoulders before kissing the top of my head. “I love you, Violet, how could I ever resist your eldritch charms?”

“Likewise,” I reply, as we walk from the graveyard.